Brand Partner Content
Daniel Stafford and Robby Switzer would never have imagined that they would be where they are today when they met back in 2010.
Today, they find themselves at the very top of the eCommerce food chain, running and managing a 7-figure ecommerce business they founded in 2015 that is poised to grow to 8 figures in the near future. And to think that not too long ago, these two were just getting to know one another aboard a fishing vessel in Alaska.
A Tale of Two Fisherman
Born in the small town of Homer, Alaska, Stafford is the son of a commercial fisherman, one who was considered a legend as he set the world record for the largest catch of herring in one set. With fishing bred into his blood and bones, Stafford decided to take a risk – a big risk. In June of 2014, he spent nearly $300,000 on a brand new fishing vessel to start his own fishing business. Not knowing what his potential return would be, he took a chance on himself and the fisherman that lived within and took a deep dive into Alaska’s commercial fishing industry – literally.
In the July that followed, Stafford’s boat had capsized. He lost his vessel, but thankfully none of his crew members. The boat was gone, and Stafford found himself in quite the financial pickle when his insurance provider let him know that his boat was underinsured. With nowhere to turn, Stafford spent the next few months trying to scrounge up whatever money he could to make up for such a monumental loss.
At the same time, Switzer was also in the midst of a transition. He had realized just how much of a toll fishing had taken on him and his family. Like Stafford, Switzer had been fishing for quite some time – but that isn’t exactly where his journey began.
Born in Montana, Switzer was used to living all around the country. His father was an artist, and as such, was constantly on the move. While money was tight, Switzer and his family always saw each new destination as a challenge. Never someone to shy away from a new opportunity, Switzer saw a chance to chart a course toward his own destiny when his family moved to Oregon.
As he entered into his teenage years and early adulthood, Robby befriended and married Daniel’s younger sister. Tom Stafford, Daniel’s father, had then convinced Robby to get into the fishing business – and that is precisely what he did.
It was a new challenge, and things were certainly rocky – but the two men pushed together and did everything they could to get in the green. Eventually, it got to the point where both men decided to make a change.
From Catching to Creating
Stafford and Switzer began to talk about the shortcomings of waiting for that big catch, and the stress of hoping that catch would provide enough revenue to pay off their yearly expenditures. They talked about their desire to create a more sustainable lifestyle for themselves and their families, even if it meant parting ways with the fishermans’ lifestyle. With that in mind, they began to put into motion a plan to create the biggest video production company in Alaska.
However, their plan didn’t go over as well as they had hoped, and they certainly struggled out of the gate. They saw just where the world was going, and they knew that eCommerce was going to be the next big industry, so they had faith in their plan – they just needed to fine tune it.
Stafford and Switzer reached out to their friend Patrick Schilling, who had once served on Daniel’s crew as a fisherman. Patrick was a bona fide salesman, and they knew they needed him on their team to help grow their ecommerce marketing agency.
When Patrick joined the team, things really took off. Since then, Shopanova has become one of the most successful ecommerce marketing agencies of our time, helping over 100 eCommerce stores double and triple their income. For Stafford and Switzer, nothing is more important to them than doing everything they can to help their clients generate the revenue that they deserve.
Shopanova is a modern growth media buying agency for eCommerce shops. They have been able to grow their clients’ monthly revenues from 5-figures all the way to 7-figures and beyond. Shopanova has been featured in Yahoo! Finance, Bloomberg Business, NBC and more. For more information on how to build a generational online brand and scale your business to millions, please visit https://shopanova.com
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